After about 2 years of growing on my patio, I have finally decided to set up a small commercial operation. I have met a number of "expert" consultants. They all were either system supply companies (they all wanted to sell me on their systems and support) or acedemics/professors, who had a ton of technical knowledge, but have never grown anything themselves on a commercial scale! Either way, I am not confident that I am going to get practical guidance to set up a larger operation that would be commercially successful. I do know that there are a few consultants somwhere who are actually growers themselves. If anyone knows of one, please send me their information. Thank you!!!
Hi Localfood! I have been running a commercial tomato and basil farm in CT for approximately 2 years. (10,000 square feet under double poly). Things are going well, and it was all because of this guy I met at a hydroponic grower's conference a few years ago. He and his wife run a great operation in MA, and he does a lot of consulting. He was the ONLY guy that I found who had a combination of knowledge AND practical growing experience. He has been growing for over 20 years. His name is Joe Swartz. Go to his website, www.SwartzFarmAmherst.com. He has a page on that site that says "consulting" or something like that. He designed my system, found buyers for me, and saved my butt a number of times when I had problems. He came to my place when I was building and then came back a few times when I needed him. The money I spent on him was by far the best investment I could have made. He is cool and knows everything about the biz. I think he is working with Sky Vegetables now too, but I know that his farm is still running strong too. Tell him that Bob from CT sent you. Good luck!
